Pennsylvania
More Pa. student teachers apply for stipends than funding can support. Advocates say more aid is needed
Some lawmakers agree.
“We love our teachers, we need our teachers, and we need to keep our teachers,” said state Rep. Gina Curry, who represents the 164th District in Delaware County, and co-sponsored funding legislation in the House. “We know that it will continue to be inequitable if we don’t get the $75 million that we really need to cover every student who wants to be a teacher.”
One of the sponsors of the legislation, state Sen. Vincent Hughes, said most teachers choose the profession “because they have a passion to educate,” not because of the paycheck.
“But we ask them in the final part of their certification process, to give up 12 weeks without any income for full-day work,” Hughes said. “We’ve asked them to do that for far too long. That ends now.”
Hughes made his comments last week at the state legislature, with a host of Democratic and Republican House and Senate members, and education advocates who supported the effort.
Republican state Sen. Ryan Aument, was also a co-sponsor of the legislation.
“We know the critical role, the essential role that classroom teachers play,” Aument said. “If we are going to deliver a high-quality education to each and every child who enters this system in Pennsylvania, we must have a process that ensures that the best and brightest go into education and want to go into education. We know that this stipend will help remove an unnecessary barrier to ensure that the best and brightest can go into education, if they choose.”
Amber Bloom, a student teacher at the University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg and vice president of Student PSEA, said that paying a small stipend to student teachers for classroom experience is a win-win.
“It is a win for the young people who want to pursue careers in the classroom, and it is a win for Pennsylvania because it removes a significant financial burden to becoming a teacher at a time when so many school districts are struggling with teacher shortages,” Bloom said.
But Bloom acknowledged that if she isn’t chosen for the stipend, she will likely have to take out a loan. Student teachers like her struggle to pay for commuting, food, and tuition, she said.
For his part, Shapiro said the stipend program is an example of lawmakers working across the aisle for a positive result.
“When these lawmakers and those who are assembled here today recognize the workforce challenges we have is, we don’t have enough teachers to educate our children, they came together,” Shapiro said.
Since Pennsylvania is one of the only states that have a divided government, with Republicans controlling the Senate and the Democrats leading the house, Shapiro said they must work together.
“That means for us to get anything done, it’s got to be common sense and it’s got to be bipartisan,” Shapiro said.
A Chester County, Pennsylvania, man is back home with his family after spending more than eight months in ICE detention.
Supporters of Carlos Della Valle spent months rallying and writing letters to immigration officials, urging them to release him. Now the Downingtown resident is sharing what it feels like to finally be home and why uncertainty still hangs over his future.
“I couldn’t be happier,” Carlos Della Valle said about being home. “You know, it’s so many months and it just didn’t seem like it was going to happen.”
Supporters lined the street outside his Downingtown home on Wednesday, cheering as he returned from a detention center in Louisiana. The 49-year-old said it still feels surreal to be back in Chester County after 258 days in ICE custody.
Della Valle, whose wife and son are U.S. citizens, has lived in Chester County for nearly 30 years. He said he came to the United States from Guerrero, Mexico, at age 20 after fleeing cartel violence.
“I was afraid for my life,” he said.
At age 21, Della Valle said, he was detained and sent back to the Mexican border, but he was never formally deported.
During a trial in August 2025, a jury acquitted him of illegally re-entering the country. Despite the verdict, he was taken into ICE custody because he does not have legal status in the United States.
Carlos Della Valle was released from ICE custody last week but said he still worries about what comes next.
“They tried to deport me twice, so what’s to stop that from happening again?” he said.
Carlos Della Valle said he now has weekly check-ins with ICE and is working with an attorney to get a work permit so he can return to his job as a plant manager at a small adhesive company.
His wife, Angela Della Valle, said the family’s experience pushed her to become more involved in immigration reform efforts.
“The Dignity Act that’s been authored by Congresswoman Maria Salazar is a very, very powerful piece of legislation,” Angela Della Valle said. “It would allow Carlos to stay since he’s linked to a U.S. citizen wife. It would allow him to work.”
For now, Angela Della Valle said she’s focused on appreciating the moments they missed during his time in detention.
“It’s amazing being together again and even more powerful to be able to come back together home,” Angela Della Valle said.
Since returning home, Carlos Della Valle said he has been reconnecting with friends and recently attended a Phillies game with his family.
“We loved being there,” he said.
Central Presbyterian Church in Downingtown is hosting a “Welcome Home Carlos” open house Saturday night to celebrate Carlos Della Valle’s release.
When 32-year-old Beth Dudley, a mom of two, walked into a convenience store in Salem Township, Westmoreland County, last month, she was stressed out about her flat tire.
Now, after winning $1 million from a scratch-off ticket, not only is Dudley getting a new tire, but she’s thinking about getting an entirely new car.
The Pennsylvania Lottery celebrated Dudley on Friday ahead of Mother’s Day, presenting her with a commemorative $1 million check.
Luck didn’t seem to be on Dudley’s side when she visited the Crabtree Gas and Go on Roosevelt Way in April. But she said she decided to treat herself to a lottery ticket anyway.
“I thought, ‘What’s it going to hurt?’” Dudley said. “I play occasionally. Before I won, my brother said, ‘You’re going to get the tire changed and your whole world will turn around.’”
And turn around it did. Dudley scratched the ticket and learned that she had won $1 million.
“I thought, ‘Am I seeing this right?’ Then I just started to cry,” said Dudley.
She said she was crying so much that when she called her mom, her mom thought something was wrong. She called her husband next, and she said he didn’t quite believe her at first.
Now she plans on buying a new car and investing the rest of her winnings. One thing’s for sure: she’ll be celebrating Mother’s Day this year with a little more money in the bank.
“It’s great to see a hardworking mom who juggles so much have some luck come her way,” Pennsylvania Secretary of Revenue Pat Browne said.
Former Somerset County 911 director Bradley Lavan has been sentenced to as long as 120 years behind bars for sex crimes he committed against five children.
Late last year, Bradley Lavan pleaded guilty late last year to dozens of charges stemming from a 2023 arrest where police alleged he sexually abused five young children.
Lavan was ordered Thursday to serve 60 to 120 years in state prison, a sentence that Somerset County District Attorney Tom Leiden called “appropriate,” citing the seriousness of the crimes he committed.
“Today, justice was served,” Leiden said, adding that “the sentence should assure that Mr. Lavan is never able to prey on innocent children again.”
At the time of his arrest, then District Attorney Molly Metzgar said that it was alleged that Lavan groomed children in ages from 3 to 6 years old and forced them into performing various sex acts on him while they were in his home.
Police at the time said that Lavan’s time as the 911 director in Somerset County ended before he was arrested and the charges and his work with the county weren’t connected.
“This successful prosecution and sentence are the result of the District Attorney’s Office’s commitment to seeking justice for victims and for protecting the children of Somerset County,” Leiden said. “We will continue to work tirelessly to make Somerset County a safe place to live, work, and raise a family.”
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